Facing Facts:

Myths and misconceptions about refugees and immigrants in Canada

REFUGEES

Myth #1: Canada receives more than its share of refugees

In fact .....

- Many other Western countries receive more refugee claimants than Canada,
both in absolute numbers and per capita. Year after year, Germany, the
United Kingdom and the United States have each received more refugee claims
than Canada.(1) Germany, the Netherlands
and Switzerland are 3 countries with more refugee claims per capita than
Canada in 1998.(2)

- The majority of the world's refugees come from - and remain in - countries
of the South. The following countries have each been hosting over a
quarter of a million uprooted people: Congo/Zaire, Ethiopia, Guinea,
Sudan, Tanzania, Azerbaijan, Germany, Russian Federation, Yugoslavia, United
States, China, Gaza Strip, Iran, Jordan, Lebanon, Syria, West Bank, India,
Pakistan. The equivalent figure for Canada was 48,800.(3)

- The number of refugees Canada accepts each year is less than a
tenth of 1% of our population.

Myth #2: Almost everyone who makes a refugee claim in Canada is accepted
and those who are refused have innumerable appeals.

In fact .....

- Less than half of refugee claimants are granted refugee status. In
1998 44% of refugee claims were accepted.(4)
The average acceptance rate over the last 5 years (1994-1998) was 48%.

- Despite the fact that refugee determination deals with matters of
life and liberty, there is in fact no appeal on the merits for refused
claimants. Review by the Federal Court is limited in scope and few claimants
are even given permission to be heard by the court. There is a risk review,
but it is very narrow and rejects over 95% of applicants.

Myth #3: Refugee claimants can prolong their stay in Canada indefinitely
because of government red tape.

In fact .....

- There is very little a refused refugee claimant can do to delay removal.
Even an application for humanitarian consideration does not postpone removal.

- Over 5,000 refused refugee claimants were removed from Canada in 1998.
Many other claimants left voluntarily.

Myth #4: Refugees who come to Canada using false documents are bogus
refugees.

In fact .....

- For many refugees fleeing persecution or death, a false travel document
is the only means of escape. Often governments refuse to issue passports
to known political dissidents - or imprison them if they apply. The fact
that a claimant uses a false travel document tells us nothing about whether
the person is a refugee or not.

- Because refugees often cannot obtain all the necessary papers, international
law prohibits governments from penalizing refugees who use false documents.(5)

- Most governments, including the Canadian, require travellers to have
visas, creating an enormous obstacle for refugees trying to escape persecution.
The more governments put up measures to stop people travelling to their
territory, the more refugees are forced to use false documents and turn
to smugglers to help them escape.

Myth #5: Refugee claimants in Canada are less deserving than refugees
abroad and Canada should therefore close its borders and only select refugees
overseas.

In fact .....

- All refugees are people who have been forced to flee their homes by
human rights abuses and all deserve the chance to start a new life. To
say that some are less deserving than others is to say that some human
beings are of less value than others.

- Canada has specific obligations towards any refugees on Canadian territory.
Sending refugees back to persecution would violate international human
rights standards.

- Canada could resettle more refugees from abroad, while still respecting
the rights of refugees who make a claim here.

Everyone has the right to seek and to enjoy in other countries asylum
from persecution.Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 14

IMMIGRANTS

Myth #1 Immigrants are a burden on the economy, and a net tax
loss for the government.

In fact .....

- Report after report shows that immigrants continue to contribute positively
to economic growth. A parliamentary committee studying the issue concluded:
"the evidence presented to the Committee confirms that Canada's immigration
program continues to exert a positive influence on our economy".(6)

- Studies show that the wage levels of Canadian-born workers are not
significantly affected by increased immigration levels.(13)

Myth #3: Recent immigrants are not integrating and threaten Canadian
values. Their level of education is low, and many cannot speak English
or French.

In fact .....

- The vast majority of immigrants either speak English or French before
arriving or learn one or both languages soon after arrival. Immigrants
are on average better educated than the Canadian-born and many of the children
leading the class in Canadian schools are immigrant and refugee children.(14)

- Over 80% of immigrants become Canadian citizens.(15)
Research has shown that immigrants participate in Canadian politics as
much as the Canadian-born.(16)

- Fears about immigrant integration are not new. Generation after generation,
people have worried about whether the most recent immigrants will integrate
as well as previous immigrants.

- Immigrants contribute to Canadian values of diversity and openness.

Myth #4 Increased immigration leads to an increase in crime.

In fact .....

- There is no established connection between immigration and
crime. Immigrants are actually less likely to commit major crimes
than the Canadian-born, and are under-represented in the prison
population. According to the most recent available figures, 20.5% of the
Canadian population older than 15 had been born outside the country, while
only 11.9% of the total prison population were foreign born.(17)

- Immigrants are just people like anyone else - a few end up in jail,
most are law-abiding.

3. US Committee for Refugees. World Refugee Survey
1998. Figures as of December 31, 1997. Figures include refugees unwilling
or unable to return because of persecution or armed conflict and who lack
a durable solution, and refugee-claimants awaiting a refugee status determination.

6. Economic Impact of Recent Immigration.
First Report of the Sub-Committee on Diminishing Returns, Eighth
Report of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration, Nov. 1995.
See also Economic Council of Canada, New Faces in the Crowd: The Economic
and Social Impacts of Immigration, (Ottawa: Supply and Services Canada,
1991) [hereinafter New Faces in the Crowd].

7. Ather H. Akbari. "The Impact of Immigrants on
Canada's treasury, circa 1990", in Diminishing Returns, D. DeVoretz
ed., 1995, p.127 agrees with a previous study: "an average immigrant household
entering Canada in 1990 was a profitable investment for original Canadian
residents as a source of public fund transfers".

11. Arun S. Roy. "Job displacement effects of Canadian
immigrants by country of origin and occupation", International Migration
Review, spring 1997. Don DeVoretz. Immigration and Employment Effects,
(Ottawa: Institute for Research on Public Policy, November 1989).

15. CICNet Publications. A Profile of Immigrants
in Canada, 1997, p.4. 81% of eligible immigrants had become Canadian
citizens as of 1991.

16. Daiva K. Stasiulis, "Participation by Immigrants,
Ethnocultural/Visible Minorities in the Canadian Political Process" (Paper
presented at the Research Domain Seminar on Immigrants and Civic Participation:
Contemporary Policy and Research Issues, Montreal, November 1997).

17. Derrick Thomas, "The Foreign Born in the Federal
Prison Population" (Paper presented at the Canadian Law and Society Association
Conference, Carleton University, 8 June 1993) - figures are for 1991; also
John Samuel, "Debunking Myths of Immigrant Crime" Toronto Star,
Jun. 17, 1998.